This year, we were excited to launch a new program in our Learning Services Department, Let Grow. I heard about the Let Grow program when I attended the NAIS conference in Nashville last February and was immediately excited to bring it back to Saint Andrews. Let Grow is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to promote free play and independence for our children. Some of my takeaways from the conference, and the reason why I wanted to bring Let Grow to our community:
- Resiliency comes from taking risks
- Mistakes build executive functioning skills
- When parents step back, children step up
- Technology is an experience blocker
- You can’t have self-directed learners without building self-directed kids
- Independence builds empathy and confidence
I presented the Let Grow program to our K-5 lower school teachers and asked for volunteers to help me pilot it this year. To my delight, all of our K-5 teachers were eager to participate.
We completed our first month of Let Grow in September with the theme “Get out of Your Comfort Zone.” Many of our students filled out leaves with their Let Grow Projects, ranging from washing blueberries independently to shopping alone at the grocery store. We had many choose to bake (I got to sample the cookies and they were delicious), make their own breakfasts, cook meals, and walk to friends' houses. The leaves are posted in the window of the learning lab, and I encourage you to stop by and see all the wonderful things our students have done to grow their independence over the past month. I have enjoyed watching students take a look at others’ projects as they walk by the window. Hopefully, they will inspire each other to “spread their wings,” which was the theme for October.
Not only has it been wonderful to hear from the students about how they felt doing their projects (words such as 'powerful,' 'brave,' 'intelligent,' 'excited,' 'it's fun to do things independently,' and 'proud') have been shared, but hearing parent comments has also validated the positive impact of this program.
When asked, “How did it feel to step back and let go this time?” Parents responded with things such as:
“Hard at first, but felt easier when *child* showed his resourcefulness.”
“It is not easy to let go, but it gets easier as *child* becomes more independent and capable.”
“It was both nice and a bit challenging to not step in.”
This program is a growth opportunity for students and parents. Sometimes, as parents, we want to help our children so much and make things feel good for them that we don’t realize we are missing opportunities to build their confidence, problem-solving, and executive functioning skills. These are the skills that will set them up for a happy, productive, and healthy life. If you are looking to help your child grow in confidence and independence, I encourage you to visit the program's website and participate in next month's theme, “Help Out Around the House.”